2. Lanzarote: 23 Nov – 31 Jan 2016

We arrived in Lanzarote, in the Canary Islands, from Lagos in Portugal, on 22 November 2015 (Blog 1) and are now in Corralejo in Fuerteventura.  In between times we have flown back to the UK twice and have cruised in Lanzarote and, to a lesser extent, in Fuerteventura, the two most easterly islands of the Canaries archipelago. 

Chart of Canaries archipelago

Arrecife, the capital of Lanzarote, where we made landfall, is named after the reefs dotted around its bay. Its new marina (Marina Lanzarote), together with its fishing fleet, is located in the old anchorage in Puerto de Naos, adjacent to the commercial port, cruise liner and ferry docks, and close to the city centre.  

When we were there two years ago it was only marginally better than a building site with some pontoons. Today it is fully completed with all facilities (except a fuel dock, which is supposed to be due soon).

Aerial view, looking north, of Arrecife port, docks and Marina Lanzarote [photo from Marina’s website]

Because October and November are busy months in the Canaries’ sailing calendar (and we were enjoying life), we had not rushed to leave Lagos in Portugal.  The already limited berths throughout the Canary Islands for active cruising visitors are not only taken up throughout the year by local boats, long-term live-a-boards and absentee owners, but also by cruisers planning to cross the Atlantic, who assemble like swallows to await the ‘official’ end of the hurricane season in late November.  A bit overcrowded for our liking.

Marina Lanzarote in Arrecife had been particularly busy. Apart from traditional visiting cruisers, including those taking part in the 250-yacht Atlantic Rally for Cruisers (ARC) from Grand Canaria, the marina also hosted participants in the Atlantic Odyssey Rally and two major ocean races.

Presentation of Para-Sail to participants of the Atlantic Odyssey Rally, prior to their departure for Martinique

One of the enormous trimarans 
on the RORC race to Grenada

    

An Estonian racing yacht on the MiniTransat (under 7m) single/double-handed race to Martinique

Initially we based ourselves in Arrecife since we always planned to return to the UK in December.  In our opinion, it is the best location in the archipelago to leave a boat as it is well protected from the elements and has good security. 

Having had a ‘lively’ last twenty-four hours’ sailing on our approach to the Canaries, we at first spent time on repairs, generally sorting ourselves out and winding down – a pleasure in the island’s excellent climate.

Helen repairing a torn sail (yet again) with her trusty ‘Speedy Stitcher’

We particularly enjoyed reacquainting ourselves with Arrecife.  It is a ‘typical’ small Spanish city, which houses half of the island’s population.  It has an attractive promenade with excellent shopping facilities, back streets that are a maze of sun-bleached white buildings, small shops, businesses, bars and restaurants.  Business parks have developed on the city’s outskirts; even Lidl and IKEA are represented!

Arrecife from our plane with the port and the marina in the background and business parks in foreground

Arrecife’s scenic inner lagoon adjacent to the city centre

 

Promenade and old harbour in the background

With few tourist ‘attractions’ as such, it isn’t visited much by holiday makers from the resorts.   However, it acts as a hub for visitors from the many cruise ships that call at the port and for the buses that travel around the island. 

Queen Mary II – one of the many visiting cruise liners

As planned, we flew back to the UK for a long weekend at the beginning of December to see the premiere in London of ‘The Lock In’, a film produced and directed by our younger son Will and his friend Craig.  They now intend to enter it into appropriate international film festivals. The film was shot on location in The Barley Mow pub, Marylebone, which Will jointly manages with fellow actor Caolan Byrne, who plays the landlord in the film.

Will and Craig, co-producers and directors of ‘The Lock In’, outside the Everyman cinema in Baker Street

Poster of ‘The Lock In’ with Caolan Byrne behind the bar

The Barley Mow pub, Marylebone, where the film was shot

Obviously the visit gave us another opportunity to see our granddaughter Emmy. We continue to be amazed by how quickly she is developing.

Emmy – developing by the day

Back in Lanzarote we were pleasantly surprised when a catamaran, Manx Goose, manned by Steve and Ali Sweet and their daughter Rebecca, pulled up alongside.  We last saw them when they bought their boat, which was next to us in Ipswich, in 2009. 

Steve, Ali and Rebecca Sweet on Manx Goose, our neighbours in Ipswich

We also enjoyed the company of Mary and Derek Bond from Harrogate who have recently purchased a beachside apartment in Playa Blanca at the south of the island. Mary and Helen were both pro-active members of the PTA at St Aidan’s in Harrogate where both the boys went to school.

Mary and Derek Bond, old friends from Harrogate

Lanzarote’s unique feature is its volcanic landscape which forms the spine of the island.   Its narrow plains and coastline accommodate holiday resorts which developed around sandy bays and beaches.

Some of Lanzarote’s famous volcanoes

A typical stretch of Lanzarote coastline and holiday resorts viewed from the air

In our opinion, Lanzarote, together with Fuerteventura, offers some of the best sailing conditions, facilities and weather in the Canary Islands. Although their west coasts, facing the Atlantic, have nowhere safe for yachts to stop, the other coasts are relatively well protected from the prevailing northerly winds.  Lanzarote now boasts three international-standard marinas, a couple of attractive old ports and two splendid anchorages, in addition to excellent boat support services.

Chart of Lanzarote showing principal locations mostly referred to in this Blog

We flew back to the UK for Christmas, which we enjoyed in London at Will and Lesley’s flat, together with Annie, Lesley’s mother, our elder son Henry and his wife Sarah from Knaresborough, and their dog Ruben. We were all particularly fortunate in being able to live in Lesley’s friends’ nearby three-storey house over the festive season while they were away. This was Emmy’s first Christmas and the first time that we’ve all had Christmas together as a family for the last fifteen years.

Family outing in Hyde Park

Christmas dinner – Henry and Will work as a team

Emmy gets to grips with her first Christmas present – although she looks uncharacteristically somewhat bemused by the whole procedure

We joined Mike’s brother Bruce and his wife Jill in Suffolk for New Year with mutual friends. Each couple produced a course and its complementary wine.  Suffice it to say it was an excellent evening, although not a ‘dry’ one. 

New Year’s Eve with mutual friends enjoyed at Mike’s brother Bruce’s in Suffolk

Two years ago we visited most of the attractions in Lanzarote. This time we have adopted a more leisurely approach and simply enjoyed day sailing and staying in selected parts of the island, in particular: Arrecife (see above); La Graciosa, the small island at the north of Lanzarote, which has been described as the ‘jewel of the Canaries; and Papagayo on the island’s well-protected south coast.

La Graciosa is truly a ‘desert island’.  Its magnificent volcanic and sandy scenery is reminiscent of what the Lanzarote coastline was supposedly like before the tourist invasion began in the sixties.  It has retained its unique character as a consequence of being relatively difficult to get to and having become part of a protected nature reserve.

A picture in the bakery which gives an overview of Isla La Graciosa taken from the Lanzarote mainland

Typical volcanic hills and sandy scrub on the island

Playa de Conchas – a magnificent isolated beach 
on the north coast

The island’s active old fishing port of Caleta del Sebo is today serviced by the local ferries from Orzola on the Lanzarote mainland. It also has some basic pontoons and facilities for its fishing fleet, yachts and local boats.  

Caleta del Sebo village and port viewed from inland

View of Caleta del Sebo from the top of our mast

The village capitalises on its unique reputation.  Small apartments and rooms are available for holiday rental, restaurants and bars have flourished and tourist recreational facilities are now available, in particular surfing, diving, cycle hire, boat trips, organised Jeep tours and, of course, hiking. We walked around the island through its magnificent volcanic scenery – albeit on three separate day hikes.

Helen walking along a track in typical sandy scrub

The unmade-up road around the island for use by authorised ‘Jeep safaris’

Otherwise the island’s facilities are limited to a few small shops, an excellent bakery and a daily fish market.  Clint Eastwood, in full Spaghetti Western gear, would not look out of place walking down the sandy streets between the white-washed houses.

 The ‘High Street’, Caleta del Sebo

An example of the excellent 
holiday accommodation in the village

At the south of the island, some three miles from Caleta del Sebo, lies the only anchorage (these days) for yachts at Playa Francesca.   It is connected to the town by a sandy track. The bay is well protected from the prevailing northerly winds and out of season it provides the peace and tranquillity that cruisers sometimes crave.

Playa Francesca anchorage in La Graciosa 

seen from the shore

Anchorage viewed from Island Drifter

Papagayo Bay, the other quality anchorage, is at the south end of Lanzarote.  It is also an attractive, well-protected sandy location within a National Park – hence it has not been ‘developed’.

Island Drifter anchored close to the shore at Papagayo – viewed on the chart plotter

Shore and island viewed from the boat

Surf permitting, one can land by dinghy on any of the beaches in the bay, from where it is a three-mile walk on a dirt track past Marina Rubicón to the popular and very pleasant south-facing holiday resort and ferry port of Playa Blanca.

Marina Rubicón with Playa Blanca in the background

We are now on a very wobbly narrow pontoon in Corralejo, a Government port on the north coast of Fuerteventura. As is ‘normal’, the locals and live-a-boards have completely taken over the (new’ish) visitors’ pontoon – previously funded with EU money to encourage tourism!!  On reflection we shouldn’t really complain, since we like the location and atmosphere.

Boats sheltered from the elements on pontoons and at anchor in Corralejo, Fuerteventura, with statue of a fisherman’s family in foreground – a reminder of its former raison d’etre

Mike sailed to Corralejo to pick me up after my annual pilgrimage to watch the ‘Strictly Come Dancing Live Tour’ with fellow enthusiasts from Harrogate.

Strictly – Live!

Corralejo is a former fishing harbour that is now dominated by the frequent car ferries plying across the waters of the Estrecho de la Bocayna to and from Playa Blanca in Lanzarote.  As a consequence of the reliably good weather, the well-protected bay, outstanding beaches, excellent diving, angling and surfing (including wind and kite) opportunities, the old town of Corralejo by the port has expanded dramatically into a large holiday resort, one of the two largest on Fuerteventura.

Corralejo port – with Island Drifter centre stage on her wobbly pontoon

We are now due, when the present northerly wind ‘drops a bit’, to return to Arrecife to await the arrival of our friends Max and Sue who are flying out to Lanzarote to join us for a ten-day cruise.  We are looking forward to seeing them.

Max and Sue in El Cotillo, Fuerteventura, two years ago